Lone Star College-Kingwood psychology lab offers hands-on learning

LSC-Kingwood's space has 'virtual rats' and brain or 2 for in-depth exploration

By Lindsay Peyton

Published 8:15 am, Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Photo: Courtesy

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Raquel Henry, left, professor Stacy Walker, center, and professor Tony Foster look at resources in the Lone Star College-Kingwood college's new psychology lab. A hands-on psychology lab on campus offers students a chance for more in-depth exploration of topics related to behavior. less

Finally, they found a room to use for the psychology lab in the library.

A grand opening celebrated the occasion in August 2014.

The lab now houses virtual rats, experimental games, various books, interactive resources as well as a brain or two.

"I've been collecting some things for the lab over the years," Walker said. "People have been donating items as well. We want it to continue to grow."

A student favorite in the lab is "Sniffy the Virtual Rat," a software program that mimics a lab rat.

"In a traditional lab, we would work with live rats and train them to do different things," Walker said. "The virtual rat is trained just like the traditional rat. All of the things we learn about in the textbook, they can see with the virtual rat."

She said her next endeavor is to move to a larger space.

"I really want to spark an interest, raise ideas and questions," Walker said. "I just want to get the students outside of the classroom. A lot of learning can happen outside of the classroom."

During the semester, the psychology lab is open from 12:30-1:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The lab also offers students books about psychology, as well as new texts, movies and games.

"I just want to give them as much to experience as I can," Walker said. "They get to see what the field has to offer and it's really a cool space."

She said that the ultimate goal is to help students apply their studies to the real world.

"You can sit in the classroom as much as you want, but when you actually get to experience the material, it's just the best way to learn," Walker said.

Sesay agreed.

"This generation of students is quite unique," she said.

"They need hands-on instruction. They need proof of theory. Giving them the opportunity to have tactile moments helps them understand the rationale."

She added that the combination of classroom and lab experiences gained at the college provides a strong foundation for students who want to transfer and study psychology at a four-year university.

"I thought this would expose our students to very important aspects of psychology that they might not see at a community college level," Sesay said.

She said the college is now working on creating a crime lab for criminal justice students.

Because of its success, future plans call for eventually expanding the psychology lab.

"I would love to see it become more part of the lectures," Sesay said. "I would love to see it more active, and to see our students more engaged in it.